Crossing the Barrier Read Online Free Page B

blood from her hair. To think Malakai had seen her this way…
    Overall, she had been lucky in her bad luck. The cut hadn’t been deep, and she hadn’t needed stitches. However, the lump on her head was rather spectacular, and just frowning made her head ache.
    She unlocked the front door, hoping her mother wasn’t there, but in the next instant she knew she wouldn’t be so lucky.
    Beatrice was everything Lily was not. She was cultured, usually dressed as if she were about to attend the most important meeting in the world, and often wore high heels that Lily would never in her life dare to wear for fear she would break an ankle. Her mother’s makeup was always smartly applied, and her blond hair was always tied in an impeccable ponytail. She was the perfect picture of elegance, and she usually sported an inviting smile, which looked warm and sincere, but in reality, was anything but.
    She was a stunning woman, but her beauty didn’t run deep.
    Her mother was the reason she had become so good at shielding. Over the years, Beatrice’s feelings toward her had gone from cold and distant to angry and hateful, and Lily had had no other choice but to adapt. Stronger shields were the only way for her to protect herself from all her mother’s madness. Lily had in fact become so good at it that she could pretty much go through her day like a regular high school student, barely feeling people unless she touched them.
    Lily opened the door and saw Beatrice standing in the living room next to the white couch, talking with a well-dressed man. They were drinking wine from delicate crystal glasses. Beatrice obviously liked the man, and Lily felt the man’s attraction to her mother in return.
    As Lily walked in, their discussion stopped, and they turned to her. Beatrice’s venom at the interruption was so strong it left a bad taste in Lily’s mouth.
    “Elizabeth, dear, where have you been?”
    No one—no one except Beatrice, that was—called her Elizabeth. Her father had called her Lily since she was a toddler, and she had gone by that name ever since.
    “Why do you call me Lily, Daddy?” she had asked when she was five years old.
    “Because you’re the most beautiful little girl in the world, and you’re the flower of my life,” he had said.
    However, Beatrice, despite multiple requests, insisted on calling her by her full name, which Lily hated. “Elizabeth is a proper name for a young lady. Lily is for a little girl with no manners and no means,” she had said.
    Lily was convinced her mother called her Elizabeth just to spite her.
    Despite the warm smile Beatrice was now giving her, Lily felt her mother wanted her anywhere but home, and Lily did what she usually did when she was in her mother’s presence: She slammed her shields into place…or tried to. She knew it hadn’t worked when a wave of pure annoyance washed over her, the wave so intense Lily took an involuntary step back.
    “Are you well?” Beatrice asked, showing all appearance of concern.
    From the man, curiosity.
    Lily should not have felt it. Her weakest shield should have stopped it. Like at the hospital earlier, she felt everything.
    She heard the blood pound in her ears. What was wrong with her? Then the realization hit her, and Lily’s heart began to race. Her shielding abilities had not come back.
    She lightly touched the bump on her head. Again, she tried to slam her shields in place but to no avail. It was simply not working, and she was rapidly getting a headache, which made her stomach queasy.
    “Oh, I spent the entire day at the hospital with a head injury,” she answered with a smile of her own, despite her racing heart and pounding head.
    Lily had become quite good at showing a facade of pleasantness, even when she didn’t feel it. It was a requirement if one were to survive living with Beatrice. Not only did Beatrice pride herself on appearing cool and composed, she also liked to prey on others and use their weaknesses to her own